Adira, Adira
by felicityredbarrow
Summary: If you can't tell the difference between a human and a robot, is there really a difference? Dr. Ochanomizu and Astro face this question when they meet Adira and Adira.
1. Chapter 1

This fanfiction is technically finished, but I'm going to post it in sections. It's not very long, only about 10 pages single-spaced. It's set in the 2003 series because that is the one with which I am most familiar. Yes, I used Ochanomizu and Astro together. Technically I should have probably used O'shay and Astro or Ochanomizu and Atom, but just bear with me. Otherwise, let me know what you guys think.  
Introducing:

**_Adira, Adira_**

Dr. Ochanomizu paced back and forth in the deserted lab. He couldn't sit still. The ends of missions were always the most nerve-wracking, and the rain falling down in sheets outside did little to calm him.

Guiltily, he found himself wishing he had asked Yuko to stay late. He might have done so had he known what was to transpire after she left. Having someone to talk to at a time like this was always a comfort.

Any moment now he would receive a call from Astro, the robot responsible for so many victories in the past. Staring at the audio device he used to keep in touch with Astro, the doctor willed it to make a noise of some kind, and he felt a strange mixture of relief and apprehension when it suddenly came to life.

"Dr. Ochanomizu, are you there?"

"Yes, Astro! I'm at the Institute of Science! What's going on? Are you on your way back? Have you found Adira? Is she alright?" The flood of questions were like a stream breaching it's banks, and the doctor had to clap his hand over his mouth to stop them pouring out so he could listen to the reply.

"I found her, and she's okay."

The doctor breathed a sigh of relief. "I'll alert Professor Akamine. It's a long journey, so he won't make it here until tomorrow morning at the earliest in this weather."

"But I was too late," the tinny voice on the audio continued.

Dr. Ochanomizu felt his heart skip a beat. "What are you talking about, Astro? I thought you just said that Adira was alright!"

"I think you'd better take a look for yourself, Doctor. I'll be there in just a few minutes, now."

The wait seemed to take forever, but a glance at the clock told Dr. Ochanomizu that it had indeed only been a few minutes when Astro opened the door. "Thank goodness!" he cried. The wind whipped what little hair the doctor had on his head into a frenzy, and a flash of lightning briefly illuminated the continuing downpour.

"Hurry inside, you two!" Astro urged.

What came through the door made the doctor do a double-take. Not one, but two small girls stumbled through the door just before it was shut again against the gale. They were absolutely identical! Blonde hair plastered down by the rain, green eyes, matching dresses, black shoes, even their socks were the same.

He simply stared at the children until Astro's voice snapped him out of his shock. "Dr. Ochanomizu, they're soaked!"

"Dear me, what was I thinking? It's much too cold here; you'll both catch your death! We'll go to my house. Astro, bring me my coat, please!" As he spoke, the doctor took off his suit jacket and wrapped up one of the children.

"Here's your coat, Doctor," Astro said, offering it to the doctor.

"Not for me, Astro," the doctor said as he picked up the child in his jacket. "Bundle up the other girl."

Astro frowned, "But, Doctor, they don't both need a coat. One of them is a robot."

The doctor's eyes widened, and he studied the child in his arms. "Really? Which one?"

Astro looked from one to the other. Both looked miserable. "I don't know. I thought maybe you could tell."

"We'll worry about that later, Astro. Let's just go."

***************

The drive had taken longer than usual as the doctor had a hard time navigating through the downpour, and he was grateful to Astro for eventually offering to carry the car home himself. Finally, when they were all inside, Dr. Ochanomizu breathed a sigh of relief as he shut the door to block out the storm once again.

"You're back!"

The doctor frowned as the maid robot took his soaked hat. "Nora, I told you that you can power down after 8:00."

"It's a good thing I didn't! Look at you!" Nora fussed. "I'll just get a fire going right away!"

"I'll do it!" Astro offered. He walked over to the obsolete fireplace. Aiming one of his rocket jet boots, he set the wood ablaze. "Nora's right, come and get dried off. It's not good for you to be all wet."

The doctor was sure that if Nora's face was more suitable for expressions, she would have looked annoyed. "It's all right, Nora. Please go power down. You know what happens when you tax your energy cells." To his relief, the robot didn't argue further. She slid away out of the room to shut herself off for the night.

Ochanomizu opened a small closet and pulled out a heavy quilt to replace his soaked coat and jacket. "Hmm," he studied them as he picked them up. "I certainly hope that 'dry clean only' is merely a- a- ah-choo!"

"Oh, poor Doctor!" Astro gave him a worried look.

"Nevermind," Ochanomizu waved away the robot boy's concern as he hung the two garments to dry. He then joined the children by the fire to dry off himself. He smiled kindly down at the two girls bundled up in the blanket. "We haven't been properly introduced. My name is Dr. Ochanomizu."

"My name's Adira," both children answered simultaneously, each giving the other a distressed look.

"But we can't both be Adria, can we?" one of the girls asked, and the other nodded in agreement.

Astro Boy spoke, "I think I'd better tell you about what happened, Doctor."

"Yes, I think you'd better," the doctor agreed.

"But I don't know if you'll believe it," Astro cautioned.

***************

"You were right, Doctor. Adira was kidnapped by a rogue robot. Her name is Drea, a companion robot who was driven crazy when her human companion, Madeline, was killed in an accident. I felt sorry for her."

The doctor looked sympathetic. "Hmm, well, that sounds a bit like Dr. Tenma, Astro. He was driven mad by grief, as well. That's why he created you."

Astro nodded and continued his story. "Drea took Adira because she looked a lot like Madeline, but she knew she couldn't keep her. She used Adria as a blueprint for the most human-like robot in the world. She wanted the robot Adira to be so human-like that even Drea herself couldn't tell the difference. She scanned Adira's brain and copied all of her memories onto the electronic brain for the robot, so they're as identical as a human and a robot can be.

Dr. Ochanomizu pondered this new information for a moment. "Am I to understand that not only do we not have any way to tell the human from the robot, but the children themselves don't know?"

Astro nodded. "Whichever is the robot, she practically is human!

One of the girls tugged at his sleeve. "Dr. Ochanomizu, I know I'm not a robot because I have emotions."

"No, you can't have emotions because I have emotions. You have to be the robot!" the other girl stated in what she must have felt to be infallible logic.

"I am not a robot!"

"You're both scared," Ochanomizu interrupted before a fight could manifest. "That's why you're accusing each other."

"There must be some way to tell them apart. What if we x-rayed them? Then we could see which one is a machine." Astro pointed out.

"It's a good idea, Astro, except that some robots can be badly hurt or even destroyed by x-rays. It would be terribly reckless to give them any kind of scan at all without knowing how the robot was made. But we must come up with something. Her father will be here to pick up his daughter tomorrow." Dr. Ochanomizu stood up and began pacing the room.

"Well," Astro mused aloud, "there are things robots can do that humans can't, right?" He jumped behind the sofa and lifted it up over his head. "Ta-daa! Can either of you do that?" he asked as he set it back down.

The two Adiras crawled out from under the blankets and grabbed ahold of the sofa. Together they were only able to move it a few inches across the floor.

"Are you sure you're both trying as hard as you can?" Astro asked.

"It's no use, Astro," Dr. Ochanomizu continued to pace as he explained. "You said that Drea was trying to create a robot that was like Adira. A small child couldn't lift a heavy object like a sofa, so I see no reason why she would give such an ability to her robot."

"I guess you're right."

"It's much more likely," the doctor continued, "that Drea may have overlooked some human trait that she forgot to add to her robot. For instance, robots don't grow."

"But we can't tell if either of them is growing in just one night," Astro protested.

"I don't want to be a robot!" one of the girls suddenly burst out crying.

"Me neither!" the other sobbed.

"Being a robot isn't bad," Astro said reassuringly as he patted one of the crying children on the back. Both girls ran to the doctor, each taking one of his hands into their own.

"There's nothing wrong with being a robot!" Astro reiterated, a little upset that they had run away from him.

Dr. Ochanomizu led the children back to the sofa to sit and calm down. "Don't take it personally, Astro. I don't think they're against robots. I think they're really just frightened that their memories might be false. How would you feel if you found out that everything you remember never actually happened to you?"

Shocked and a little ashamed, Astro bowed his head. "Gosh, I never thought of that. It would be just awful!"

"If I'm a robot, I won't ever get to go home!"

"Daddy won't love me anymore!"

The doctor stopped pacing and suddenly sneezed loudly, startling both girls into silence.

"Are you sick, Dr. Ochanomizu?" Astro asked worriedly.

The doctor rubbed his nose irritably. "Hmm, maybe I am coming down with something," he admitted.

"I sure am glad robots don't get sick," Astro added.

Dr. Ochanomizu stared at Astro, an idea forming in his head. "Yes… Yes, that just might work," he thought aloud.

"What might work? Doctor, you're not going to try and make them sick, are you?"

The doctor was taken aback. "What? Absolutely not! The very idea! However," he continued a bit more calmly, "I have thought of something that might answer our question. Wait here; I'll be right back." With that, he disappeared into the kitchen.


	2. Chapter 2

"The test is simple," Dr. Ochanomizu promised upon his return. "I'll administer it one at a time. Now, which one of you would like to go first?" He frowned as both girls seemed to shrink away from him. "Now, now, one of you is going to have to be brave. I promise it isn't a difficult test." When neither budged, he sighed. "If you won't choose, I'll have to."

The doctor stood in front of the two, pointing to one at random. "Come with me, please." He gently steered her out of the room, closing the door behind him.

As soon as they had gone, the child left behind looked imploringly at Astro. "Wh- what do you think the test is?"

Astro shrugged. "I don't have a clue," he answered unhelpfully. "But don't worry, Dr. Ochanomizu knows what he's doing."

She opened her mouth as if to say something more, but seemed to think better of it. Instead, she simply sat on the sofa, wringing her hands nervously. Before she could get too agitated, however, the door opened.

The doctor stood in the doorway with a hand on the nob. She noticed the other hand was holding a small black box. "Now, then, let's see." His words were directed at the room he was exiting. "I'll just have you stay in here until I've tested your double."

The Adira on the sofa tried to catch a glimpse of her counterpart in the other room, but couldn't make anything out before the door was closed again. Anxiously, she stood up.

Dr. Ochanomizu crossed the room, giving her a kind smile. "You two must be the most nervous children I've ever met; human or robot," he commented. The doctor held up the box. "The test is in here, and as I said, it's very simple."

Adira didn't look any too sure as he held the box in front of her. She turned her head slightly as if afraid that something unpleasant was going to leap out at her.

"I'm going to open this box. I want you to take a whiff and tell me what you smell."

Astro looked uncertain. "But, Doctor…" The test didn't make any sense to him. He was a robot, and he had a sense of smell. Dr. Ochanomizu had explained to him that it was a simple matter of detecting and recognizing molecules.

The doctor seemed to know what Astro was thinking but didn't show any concern, "Just let her take the test." He opened the box.

Astro watched as Adira took a sniff and immediately backed away coughing.

"It's… pepper!" she choked, her eyes streaming. She sneezed.

Dr. Ochanomizu nodded. Satisfied by the results of the test, he drew a pen from his pocket. He took one of Adira's hands and wrote symbol. "Congratulations, you're human."

Adira traced the symbol with her finger and looked up at the doctor. "The other Adira couldn't tell you what was in the box?"

The doctor smiled. "Of course she could tell me what was in the box. I'm afraid I wasn't entirely honest about the test. I was really looking for a human reaction. When it comes to robots and humans, coughing and sneezing are almost exclusively human functions."

Now Astro understood, though one thing still bothered him. "Doctor? Couldn't a robot be programed to do those things?"

Ochanomizu rubbed his nose thoughtfully as he walked to the door. "That was always a possibility. We just got lucky, really." He opened the door to let the robot Adira back into the room. On her hand was a robotics symbol, and she was gazing at it with a forlorn expression on her face.

An emotionally charged silence filled the room as the girls avoided eye contact with each other. When he couldn't take it any longer, Astro voiced the question that was on everyone's mind. "What are you going to tell her father?"

Dr. Ochanomizu looked defeated in a way that really showed his years. "I know it's going to be hard for everyone, but I don't see how I can tell him anything other than the truth." He gazed down at the children. "I'm sure you must be tired. Why don't you get ready for bed. Someone can have the guest room, and someone can have mine; I'm sure I won't be sleeping tonight."

Dr. Ochanomizu waited patiently as the man on the other end of the video phone processed the story he had just been told. Professor Akamine took off his glasses so he could mash the palms of his hands into his eyes in what the doctor interpreted as an overwhelmed gesture.

"You mean to tell me," the professor finally spoke, "that a robot made another robot… _of my daughter?"_

"I know it's a bit of a shock-"

"It's disgusting!" the professor interrupted as he slammed his fists on the table in front of him. "First it kidnaps her, and then it makes a copy! My little girl made of- of... a chunk of metal and spare parts!"

The doctor cringed at such a description of a sentient robot. "Professor, that robot is programmed with the memories of your own daughter. Surely you understand what it must be like for her."

Professor Akamine's expression softened, and for a moment, Dr. Ochanomizu thought he was actually reconsidering his position. It quickly became clear, however, that the sympathetic look as for him.

The professor put his glasses back on, pushing them up the bridge of his nose. "Dr. Ochanomizu, I know you're the head of the Institute of Science and a world-class robotics engineer, but might I suggest that you spend a little less time in your laboratory? You seem to have forgotten that robots are just machines. No matter how life-like, they're not people. Now, may I please see my daughter? My real daughter?" he added.

Anger bubbling up in his chest, the doctor knew he would have yelled at him in a different situation. However, he knew that the professor had just gone through something like a parent's worst nightmare and would not be receptive to a discussion on robot civil rights. With a sigh, he mentally tabled the matter with a nod. "Of course. I'll go get her and call you back in few minutes."

He blanked out the screen and stood up wearily. "I'm beginning to think that some people will just never understand," he lamented as he made his way up the stairs.

When he came across his bedroom, the door was closed. Hoping that the occupant hadn't already fallen asleep, he knocked softly. "Hello? May I come in?" He didn't receive a reply, so he slowly opened the door and peered inside.

The room was dim, the only light coming from the dull lamp on the nightstand. The single occupant was sitting cross-legged on the bed, facing away from him. She might have been looking out the window if the curtains hadn't been drawn.

Dr. Ochanomizu stepped into the room and closed the door gingerly behind him. For a moment, he simply stood, unsure if his presence was entirely welcome. "Do you want to talk?"

He partly expected there not to be a reply. After a brief pause, he saw the slightest nod, so he made his way over to the bed.

"Do robots get sad?" The question was asked without preamble as he sat down on the edge of the bed. The small voice seemed jarring after the extended silence.

"Well, not all robots are programmed to with extensive emotional capabilities, but the ones that are have the capability to feel anything that humans do."

"Like the robot that looks like me?"

"Yes."

Adria looked up at him. "But my dad says that robots don't actually feel anything, it just looks like they do. Isn't that right?"

Doctor Ochanomizu put a hand on her shoulder. "I think I understand. You don't want to believe that your robot double is suffering."

Adira looked away, focusing on the curtains again. "You really think that robots have emotions?"

"I do."

"If she does have emotions, then I know how she must be feeling right now." Adira broke into sobs. The doctor gave her a few moments to cry, patting her back sympathetically until she calmed down.

"It's getting late," he said as he glanced at his watch. "Your father is on his way here by train, and he wants to talk to you on the video phone before you go to sleep." The doctor furrowed his brow at the child's tear-stained cheeks and residual sniffling. "I'll go call him back. Why don't you take a minute to clean up? I'll meet you downstairs, all right?"


	3. Chapter 3

Astro felt that, as a robot, he ought to offer some sort of moral support to the robot girl sitting on the bed. She hadn't yet spoken a word since the two of them had been alone, and the only noise she made was an occasional hiccuping sob. There were tears coursing in a constant stream down her cheeks that she didn't seem to notice, or simply didn't bother to wipe away. Astro watched sadly as she compulsively pinched and grabbed at the skin on her arms and legs, all the while becoming more and more distraught.

"I know you're upset, but please don't do that."

Her eyes snapped to his, and he found himself wondering if she had forgotten he was in the room.

Nevertheless, she stopped what she was doing, swiping a hand across her face.

"I can't be a robot," she muttered quietly. "They don't have emotions. Daddy said…"

"I'm a robot, and I have emotions," Astro pointed out.

This information only seemed to upset her more. "I wanna g-go h-h-home!"

Before Astro could say anything more, the door opened.

"Is something wrong? What's taking so long? I'll have to change trains any minute now!" Professor Akamine was impatient to see his daughter, and Ochanomizu couldn't blame him.

"I'm sure she'll be down any moment. I thought it was best to give her a little time to process after-"

"Don't say it!"

"Professor?"

Leaning closer to the screen, Akamine gritted his teeth. "I don't want to hear anything about that robotic imposture! In fact, I don't want to hear about robots at all!"

Dr. Ochanomizu began to get angry. "Need I remind you that it was a robot who saved your daughter?"

Professor Akamine snorted in derision. "It was because of a robot that she needed to be saved! If you ask me, robotics has gone too far ever since artificial intelligence! Creating such robots should be a crime!" The professor was so close to the screen that it looked as if he was trying to pass through it.

"Professor Akamine!" the doctor thundered, "I- oh…there you are, Adira."

She stood tentatively on the last step, obviously spooked by the intensity of the argument.

"She's there? Let me see her!" Akamine pleaded.

Ochanomizu stepped aside and motioned for Adira to take the seat in front of the video phone.

Akamine nearly cried at the sight of his daughter. "Oh, my little girl! I'm so sorry, darling, please don't cry. The doctor and I were just having a little argument."

"I miss you, Daddy."

"I miss you, too, darling."

Dr. Ochanomizu excused himself quietly and stepped out of the room into the kitchen to give them some privacy. Acting on habit, he started a pot of water for tea before sitting down at the table to ponder the events of the evening.

Something had to be done about the robot girl. Deactivating her was absolutely out of the question, but where would she go? She was only a child, probably even younger than Astro. In addition, once her electronic brain was reset, she would be little more than a toddler. She needed someone to take care of her.

He propped his head on one of his hands. "I suppose I'll have to look after her, at least for now. After all, I can't send the poor thing away. I hope Astro has been able to calm her down."

Ochanomizu sat lost in thought until the water began to boil. Absent-mindedly, he turned off the stove and left it set. He could hear from the other room that the conversation was ending.

"I really have to go, now, darling. This is my switch. Be a good girl and get some sleep. I'll be there to get you in just a few more hours, so you don't need to cry."

"Daddy?"

"What is it? Please hurry!"

"I have to tell you…"

"Yes?"

"I love you, Daddy."

"Of course, I love you, too! Goodbye!" With that, Dr. Ochanomizu watched the video phone go blank, and he walked over to switch it off completely.

"Goodbye, Daddy."

Ochanomizu froze, his finger an inch or two from the button, and looked down at the child. He couldn't help but feel there was something wrong with the way she had said those words. "Adira?"

She looked up, and the doctor watched her reach up with the back of her hand and wipe her cheek, leaving a behind a dark smear.

He searched his pockets for a clean handkerchief "Whoops! You seem to have-"

"I'm ready, now."

The doctor stopped rummaging. "Huh? What do you mean?"

"You could make me forget. If I forget Daddy, I won't be sad to lose him. Please, Dr. Ochanomizu."

The doctor stood for a moment, blinking in surprise. "But you're…" He picked up her hand and examined the smeared, but still legible, symbol. The significance of the conversation he had just overheard caught in his throat. "Are you saying you want me to reset your electronic brain? You would lose all of your memories. Everything you are would be gone. I don't think you understand…"

"I do understand, and it's what I want! I'm not Adria. She gave me one last chance to say goodbye, and now I have to go."

"No, no." Dr. Ochanomizu knelt down in front of the robot girl and put his hands on her shoulders. "You don't have to do anything."

"Please, Doctor."

He could see in her eyes that she had already made up her mind. With a sigh, he relented. "I can't do it tonight with this storm; it's too dangerous. Besides, I don't even know how you operate. I can't promise that the process will be reversible, so until then, I want you to think about it."

Dr. Ochanomizu took advantage of the silence as he rode the elevator down to the precision machinery department. It had been a full week since the night he first met her; the night she had decided. She hadn't changed her mind, and now today was the day.

"Oh, I hope I'm doing the right thing," he whispered to himself. He pulled out his hand-held communicator and pressed a button. The face of his secretary filled the small screen.

"It's time, Yuko," he stated authoritatively. "Don't patch through any calls or send anyone my way until I say so. I'll be at least two hours."

"Yes, Dr. Ochanomizu. Good luck!"

The ding of the elevator heralded his arrival, and he proceeded through two pairs of sliding doors to the laboratory. "How's my favorite patient?"

"Good, and I haven't changed my mind." She had anticipated his second question. The robot girl was sitting on the operating table, kicking her legs in what the doctor had come to learn was nervousness. She had spent many hours on that table while he had poked, prodded, and otherwise examined her. It had taken the entire first day to even find the small service hatch hidden in her arm and a whole other day to figure out how to access her electronic brain.

She looked up at him now with her soft green eyes as he approached the table. He marveled at her ability to portray nervousness, sadness, and optimism in her expression all at the same time. They had talked about what was going to happen, and she had interpreted the procedure as a sort of dying and being reborn, which was mostly accurate. Looking at her now, Ochanomizu found himself wondering how much of her personality would be rewritten in the process of resetting her brain. He had grown rather fond of her, and his reluctance to perform the procedure had become as much for his own sake as hers. He had already decided to respect her decision, and he would, but he had to try just one last time.

"You don't have to do this. It's not too late to change your mind." The doctor bowed his head as a tear trickled down his cheek.

"Doctor? Are you crying?" He heard her slip off the table. A moment later, he felt her embracing him, stretching her arms as far as they would go around his ample middle. "It's gonna be okay. Please don't cry. You're gonna make me cry, too."

Ochanomizu hugged her, picking her up and setting her back on the table. He opened up the small service hatch in her arm and connected several cables that would drain her energy reserves and stop all motor functioning. "You're going to get tired and weak very quickly, remember. Don't fight it; just go to sleep." His voice wasn't as steady as he would have liked, but he smiled brightly nevertheless. "Are you ready?"

"I'm ready."

Dr. Ochanomizu looked away as he hit the switch. The lights flickered slightly. Even though he couldn't see her face, he imagined her green eyes slowly closing. When he looked again, she was gone.

END


End file.
